Steam-warming- apparatus



l the steampressure, which enabled to hold the water quietly down in thesaid elongated oat out the air without sensibly dctracting from l aswould oc'cwith a spherical float. In other pressure is hence bottomofthe manifold until it can-escapeinto the return-pipe Il.

Another evil, heretofore of frequent occurrenc-e, has grown outot theneglectof persons in charge to close at the same time the return as wellas the supply cock ot' each inactive coil, and the consequence has beenthat the condensation-water from one or more active -coils above hasbacked up7 into the inactive -eoil and has Hooded the apartment -byescaping at the thermostat, or, i 7here no thermostat has been used, theinactive coil has become vfilled with water, which, owing to thesubstantially equal pressure at both ends,has opposed the entrance ofsteam when it has been desired to use that particular coil. This evil,together with the lodgment of water subject to freeze within the coilsand return-pipes, I have removed by the provision of self-actingcheck-valves I, 'placed at a suitable distance below the manifold, asabove described, and by the provision. ot' my air-discharging andwater-returning-tank K, which completes the circuit of operations in thefollowing manner: 'Ihe elongated float Q having been lifted by thecondensation-water so as to closethe valve P, an equilibrium of pressuretakes place betweeu the tank and thc boiler, and, the hydro staticcolumn in the former being now'lnore than sufficient to overcome theexcess of outside area ofthe valve M, the entire, or' nearly entire,yolume of water in the tank Vruns off into the boiler.

The abovecoinplete evacuation could not take place if the ii'oat Q wereofthe customary spherical form, because the least depression of thewater would act to open the valve P, and by relieving the pressurewithin the tank would enable the pressure within the boiler to almostimmediately reclose the valve M, while,

on the other hand, the elongated tioat Q being so proportioned as toswim with two-thirds or more of its height ont of the water,.and thelength of the oat being nearly equal to the caliber `of the tank, theioat does not drop until the water has nearly allv left the tank. rlheretention of the valve P to the closed condition is still furtherprolonged by the pre-` ponderating effective pressure-surface of thelower side of the valve P while the latter is closedbut when the valve Pis open, as in the drawings, the tank must uearlytill before the valve Pwill close again, because the steam,

pressing equally on all sides of thenow open valve, possesses nopreponderating influence to close it; hence tbe tank `is enabled by useof to' discharge nearly its entire volume at each lift of the valve M,instead of only a very small part of its volume,

words, the elongated form of ilovatiQ, acting .in 7

conjunction with the unequal areas of the npper and lower sides of thevalve l, results .in holdingsaid valve both' longer closed as wellniitting the escape of all air, gas, andvapor that would otherwiseinterfere with the action of the tank.

The above-described process having been allowed to continue until steamalone isseen to escape at the von tage N, the throttle O may be closeddown, and the tank will afterward,

during` active operation, discharge a portion of its contents at briefintervals whenever the excess of hydrostatic pressure in the tankovercomes the excess of eifective pressure-surface on the boiler side ofthe valve M.

By the above-described means I provide for an effectual escapeof thesupera'bumlant air and. condensation-water incident to the firststarting of the apparatus in the morning or an increased activity afterpartial or entire iuaction of one or more coils.

A inodilication ot my arrangement may conduct the return-water to' thebottom of the boiler bya pipe such as that indicated by dotted lines Itin Fig. l.

Being aware that steam-wa1ming` apparatus have long been provided withcheck-valves in their discharge-passages, l make .no claim,

broadly, to such.

I claim herein as new and of my invention- 1.A The provision of 'themanifold F, having the automatic'air-vent Gg g or its equivalent at itsupper part and the water-receptacle f at its'lower part, substantiallyas and for the purpose set forth.

2. The provision, in the return-pipe II,-of the diaphragm h and valve I,so arranged as 'to open and close automatically by the alternate actionof the back-pressure ot' the steam and the forward pressure of the waterof condensation, the latter being completely emptied at each discharge,substantially as set forth.

3. In the described combination, with the tank K, pipe-L,water-discharge valve M, ventage N, and air-discharge valve P, or theirequivalents, the provision of the elongated oat Q, arranged andoperating as set forth.

In testimony of which invention I hereunto set my hand.

C. '.A. IWILSON.

Witnesses Gao. H. KNIGHT, JAMES H. LAYMAN.

